


Salt Water

by Zandilar



Series: Call of the Tides [1]
Category: World of Warcraft
Genre: F/F, First Kiss, Night Elf, Pre-Slash, World of Warcraft - Freeform, happens directly after Jaina's nightmare and before the guy knocks, not quite fluff, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-07
Updated: 2018-09-07
Packaged: 2019-07-08 02:20:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,543
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15920910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zandilar/pseuds/Zandilar
Summary: Jaina tries to work around the need for rest, because when she closes her eyes her guilt weighs heavily on her. The Alliance Envoy, Archmage Sthrin, witnesses Jaina's unrest and decides to take matters into her own hands.





	Salt Water

 

The Kaldorei were a nocturnal people, but those who lived and worked with the other races of the Alliance had learned keep time with their allies. That didn’t always make it easy to sleep at night, especially now. Sthrin, Archmage of the Hall of the Guardian, Champion of the Alliance, and now emissary to Kul Tiras paced through the passageways of the Proudmoore Galleon. Her sleep had been disturbed by images of Darnassus burning, and the screams of those she had been unable to save as they burned to death. The deck and the skies above, even with Elune shining bright, had brought her no solace, and now she just prowled waiting for the dawn when she could distract herself with her duties.

As she reached the end of the passage to the Captain’s cabin, she paused. Her sensitive long ears picked up a soft sound from within the cabin, and then the thunk of something falling. Without really stopping to think, Sthrin opened the door.

 

Jaina Proudmoore sat at her desk, breathing quickly as she stared at the map on her desk. Ink had spilled over the top portion like tentacles, and the inkwell on its side. She wasn’t entirely sure if she was still dreaming. A noise behind her made her turn, and she saw the Night Elf Archmage, Sthrin, who was accompanying her home, standing there.

“I’m sorry, my lady, did I disturb you?” Sthrin asked, “I thought I heard something fall…”

“No, I…” Jaina paused, “I couldn’t sleep.”

Sthrin took another couple of steps into the room, her glowing blue/white eyes sweeping across the desk, taking in the fallen ink well and the burned down candles. She raised one hand, and the tell-tale purple energy of arcane magic formed around it, and the inkwell glowed the same colour in response and righted itself.

“So I see,” Sthrin said, and turned those eyes on her.

“I have a lot of things to get ready,” Jaina said, “Our trip is going to be a little difficult.”

Sthrin’s sweeping eyebrows came together over her nose, then she sighed.

“I hear their screams still,” she said, “My people are nocturnal by nature, but I cannot sleep without them, day or night. I hear the flames, and I see my people dying. I understand, I think, a little of what keeps you awake. You should try to rest anyway, even if it’s not true sleep.”

“You don’t know me at all,” Jaina said, standing up from her desk.

Sthrin’s frown became a scowl for an instant before relaxing, and she smiled. “Jaina Proudmoore, you are one of the most prominent archmages of this generation of humans, and if you think for one moment anyone who is ambitious in the realm of magic knows nothing about you, you are sorely mistaken.” The kaldorei’s voice was gentle and amused, and she stepped forward to gently touch Jaina’s cheek, lingering arcane magic tingling softly from Sthrin’s long fingers.

Jaina had been keeping an eye on Sthrin ever since she came to prominence during the Cataclysm. She had been one of the first Night Elves to start training under the remaining Highborne, and had shown an aptitude towards magic that outstripped many of her fellow students. A woman of sharp mind and tongue, Sthrin had eventually become the Archmage of the Hall of the Guardians, and even if she had never been a part of the Kirin Tor, she was definitely a woman to be reckoned with. But this gentleness was not something she had been expecting from the other woman. Most who had worked with her talked about the kaldorei’s aloofness and her pragmatic nature. She was not cruel, but she seemed to have little time for people in general. (Which made her assignment as Emissary of the Alliance to be a rather odd choice on behalf of King Anduin.)

“Rest, Lady Proudmoore,” Sthrin said, “And I promise I will do likewise. We have many trials ahead to face, and it would do no one any good if neither of us are anything less than completely awake.” Sthrin pulled back and only took a step towards the door before Jaina grabbed her arm. Sthrin looked back curiously.

“W… would you stay, Lady Sthrin?” Jaina asked, “I think I might sleep better with someone else around.”

Sthrin’s lips tugged sideways a little, and muttered something in Darnassian. Then she inclined her head and said, “Very well, I’m sure your chair is comfortable enough.”

Jaina shook her head, and gently pulled Sthrin over to the fairly generous bed (for a Galleon). She was surprised to see a light purple colour dust over the kaldorei woman’s cheeks. Jaina began to unstrap her shoulder and arm armour, and stripped down to her shift, when she looked up Sthrin had turned away and was working at her own accoutrements. Sthrin reached up behind her and pulled the silver cuff from her braid, and gently teased her dark blue hair out from its dwarven style braid. Her hair looked soft and fell to the middle of her back, and for a moment Jaina felt the urge to touch it – instead she pulled the sheets and blanket up and slipped under, shifting herself until she lay facing the wall at the far side of the bed. The bed shifted a moment later, and Jaina looked over her shoulder to see Sthrin laying on top of the covers facing away from her. Jaina sighed.

“Lady Sthrin, you are welcome to come under the covers, I won’t bite,” she said.

After a long pause, Sthrin looked back at her, “If I am coming under your covers, then you should just call me Sthrin.”

“Get under the covers, Sthrin,” Jaina said, turning her face back to the wall to hide a smile.

The kaldorei woman got up, and slipped under the covers. This time she slid across the bed until she was almost touching Jaina and rested a hand on her shoulder. Jaina reached up and pulled at Sthrin’s hand, and with a faint sigh, Sthrin slipped into place behind her, arm wrapped around her. She could feel Sthrin’s breath against her neck, the warmth from her body against her back, and for the first time in a while she felt safe.

 

Jaina woke later, feeling warm and comfortable. She opened her eyes a little to see Sthrin’s face fairly close to her own, glowing white eyes looking at her, strands of midnight blue hair across her face. There was something open in Sthrin’s face, but Jaina was not an expert at interpreting kaldorei expressions. In the dim not-quite-morning light of the cabin, Jaina reached out to lightly brush the hair from Sthrin’s face – it was every bit as soft as she thought it might be, and the colour was nothing like Kalec’s. Why the blue dragon, her ex-lover, had come to mind Jaina did not know, maybe it was something in Sthrin’s expression. Sthrin pulled back a little and gave her a small smile.

“Did you sleep well, Jaina?” she asked.

“Did you?” Jaina responded.

“I am as well rested as I can be,” Sthrin replied.

“Did you sleep at all?” Jaina asked.

Sthrin blinked slowly, let out a sigh through her nose, then shook her head.

“I’m sorry,” Jaina said, “I shouldn’t have asked you…”

“Dear Lady, it was not your fault,” Sthrin said, “And I enjoyed watching you finally get some sleep.” The expression on the kaldorei’s face made Jaina’s heart squeeze almost painfully, and she leaned forward intending only to give the elf a brief brush of lips but ended up pressing hard against her. Sthrin stiffened, then almost immediately kissed back, her arm draping back over Jaina’s waist, then pulling her in close. Jaina was not sure how long the kiss went on, revelling in the feeling of that strong lithe body against hers, lips and tongues moving together, but finally Sthrin pulled away looking flushed.

“Jaina,” she said, her voice rough, “What are we doing?”

“I don’t know,” Jaina answered, resting her forehead against Sthrin’s shoulder which was now exposed from the light shirt she had worn to sleep.

“What of Kalec?” Sthrin asked.

Jaina frowned, “What about him?”

“I may not be a member of the Kirin Tor, beautiful, but I am an archmage and you know how gossipy mages are. You and he weren’t exactly hiding your liaison,” Sthrin said, shifting so she could lift Jaina’s chin and look into her eyes.

“That’s over,” Jaina said, “At least, I think it is… Can’t this just be?”

“As much as I want to pin you down and make love to you, I can’t,” Sthrin said, “You should know Jaina, that I… It’s silly, too soon but… I want you. I know things are about to get very complex for you, so this shouldn’t be on your mind – nor mine. We will both have our work cut out for us when we reach Boralus.”

Then there was a knock at the cabin’s door, and a voice calling “My lady, we are almost about to dock.”

Jaina sighed, “Then when this is all over, we will talk about this.”

Sthrin leaned down and gently kissed her, and Jaina enjoyed the sweetness.


End file.
